osmosis

1. (chemistry) The net movement of solvent molecules, usually water, from a region of lower solute concentration to a region of higher solute concentration through a partially permeable membrane.countableuncountable

2. (figurative) Passive absorption or impartation of information, habits, etc.; the process of teaching or learning particular knowledge incidentally rather than consciously.Examples: "Near-synonym: serendipity"; "I was reading about chickens, and I guess I learned about hawks through osmosis."; "At age fourteen, by a process of osmosis, of dirty jokes, whispered secrets and filthy ballads, Tristram learned of sex."countablefigurativelyuncountable